Afterwards
by Melody Pond Williams
Summary: A brief description of Harry and Ginny's life after the War. Rated for mild language. One-shot.


Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or Funny Face, which is briefly referenced to.

Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley were curled up on the love seat in Harry's flat watching a film together. Ginny wasn't quite sure what it was about, as she was too busy listening to her sleeping boyfriend's breathing. Boyfriend. The word brought a smile to Ginny's face. Since the Battle of Hogwarts, she and Harry had somehow made it back to one another. She could still remember looking around the castle, trying desperately to find him, thinking he had rushed off again to save someone else. She had finally found him in the Astronomy Tower, at six in the morning, his back to her.

As she walked towards him, she heard a shocking sound coming from Harry. He was crying. The Boy-Who-Lived, the man who was everyone's hope, everyone's rock, the one who had just killed _He Who Must Not Be Named _and had saved the world yet again, now had tears trickling down his face and was gulping shuddering breaths of air. It wasn't uncommon for Harry to show his emotions. He was a very passionate person, and he could get very angry. Ginny had been witnessed his rage a couple years ago, and had seen his raw anger. It had scared her a bit at the time, but it was nothing to the fear she was experiencing now. Some one who was always so strong, a leader,now reduced to a weeping mess. It was heartbreaking to see.

She walked up behind him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. He jumped, whipping his head around, most likely thinking it was a Death Eater coming to finish him off. When he saw who it was, he took on a defiant look, as though trying to claim he hadn't just been having a good cry.

"Come to laugh at me?"he said in a tight voice. Ginny frowned at him

"You know I would never do that to you, Harry,"she whispered,"And I'd appreciate if you didn't have such a low opinion of me."

Harry's shoulders sagged.

"I'm sorry," he said, "I don't know why I said that. After everything you've been through just since yesterday. And it's my fault. They're all dead-Fred, Tonks, Lupin, Colin, and so many others that I never even knew-and I'm the reason. If I had just turned myself in, they'd still be alive. And I just don't..." he broke down into sobs, leaning heavily on Ginny. She wrapped her arms around his shaking form, whispering words of comfort in his ear, until she felt everything she had experienced come crashing in on her,and she dissolved into tears as well.

They stayed that way for a while, just holding onto one another for support. When they finally pulled apart, Ginny noticed the sun was now rising. This barely registered to Ginny. She was to focused on Harry sorrow filled eyes. She leaned into him, pulling him down a bit to press her forehead to his.

"Harry," she began, "You need to understand something very important. No one died because of you. They died fighting for freedom, and against evil. Tom Riddle is the reason they're dead. That bastard and his filthy little minions. You are the one who gave us hope. You're the one who would've died in a heartbeat to save any of us. And I understand you're sad, believe me, I do. But we've been blessed with a chance to carry on. We have a chance to fix things and to keep on living. Those that died have moved on, but we're still here, and we need to be strong, even if that's the last thing we want to do. Fred would want us to keep living."

She finished this in a hushed voice. He looked at her, no, more into her, into her very soul, making her knees weak. He smiled slightly. "Thanks. I needed some of your blatant words to help me see things better. You're right. This is our second chance. An-and if you want, er, maybe we could, you know, give "us" a second chance too, if that's not out of the question." He was blushing now, and fidgeting. Ginny smiled at him.

"No, it's not out of the question. In fact, after all the time I've waited for you, you'd better take me back."

His face split into a true smiled, that grin she loved so much. Then he kissed her. It wasn't earth shattering. Sparks didn't fly. It was the kind of kiss that was passionate, but kind and gentle, comforting and real. It told her that told her that he was there for her, that he'd always be there for her, no matter what. And she felt the same for him.

That had been four years ago, and now the wizarding community was stable again. Harry was now Head of the Department of Law Enforcement, and she was a reserve player for the Holyhead Harpies. But best of all, she was now wrapped in Harry's strong arms (the Auror boot camp had made him rather fit, which Ginny was ecstatic about). She looked at his peaceful sleeping face, and leaned in to kiss him on the nose. He stirred, then, with blurry eyes looked up at her.

"Whazza time?"

"Little after eleven." She giggled at his sleepy expression. He was just so cute when he was tired.

"What are you laughing at?" he questioned defensively.

"Nothing, you just look funny right now."

"Oh yeah, well, whatever. If I wasn't so tired I'd make you pay for that."

"Ah, Mr. Potter, all bark and no bite."

"Too sleepy." He said with a yawn, before resting his head on Ginny shoulder and drifting back to sleep.

She smiled again as she turned her attention back to the film. Seeing as she hadn't really been watching it up until now, she wasn't quite sure what was going on. They were all dancing around France singing "Bonjour, Paris!". But she didn't really care. She rested her head on Harry's, and was swept into a contented sleep.

Author's Note: There, my first fan fiction! Please review and tell me what you think. I love constructive criticism. Hope you enjoyed it. Allons-y!


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